Aircraft turbine engines are particularly susceptible to damage from birds introduced into the air intake stream of the gas turbine. An ingested bird can rupture, distort and damage blades and other component parts of the engine. When this occurs, the desired balance condition of the compressor is often disrupted and the probable useful life of the engine is shortened if not completely destroyed.
Aircraft turbine engines have therefore been commonly provided heretofore with air inlet covers, such as screens and the like to prevent ingestion of sizable foreign objects. Screens, however, have been found to produce a safety hazard when ice forms over the screen. They also generally impair the efficiency of the engine by interfering with normal air flow through the engine and frequently these screens break up with disastrous results to the engine. In addition, none of the prior art systems provide a means to break up a foreign object into smaller, harmless pieces.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide protection apparatus for an aircraft turbine engine that does not interfere with the air flow to the intakes while providing a means to reduce large birds and other foreign objects into smaller harmless pieces.